Borrow $500 and Pay it Back.

Su He's mind was very messy. He sat down on the floor, leaning against the door. The wound on his lower back had stopped bleeding. He touched the back of his head, which had swollen up into a huge lump.

The room was completely silent. Just three meters away from him was the suitcase. He knew that inside was the beautiful and kind Ye Lady.

When he thought of the words "system space", two small squares appeared in his mind. When he thought of batteries and power banks, these items suddenly appeared in his hands.

He almost dropped the dozens of pounds of batteries on the floor.

With a thought, the two items disappeared again.

He didn't know how much time had passed before he heard the sound of police sirens downstairs. Soon, someone was knocking on the door.

Su He got up and looked through the peephole. After confirming they were police, he opened the door.

...

"Officers, listen to me. That guy didn't look like a good person at first glance. Last night I waited for him for over two hours but he didn't come out. I knew something was wrong, and I was right. " The security guard uncle said to the police officer taking notes: "This is his electric scooter. I was suspicious at the time and locked it up directly. Officer, does this count as being a good Samaritan..."

"Oh, it's the little girl from room 603. What a nice girl. She was pretty and polite. Last time my grandson accidentally dirtied her skirt, but the girl was very understanding and didn't mind at all."

"Girls living alone must protect themselves well. People have ulterior motives, being too kind is not good either. That delivery guy must have taken advantage of her. What a pity for the girl."

...

The quiet of Jia Ming community was broken at 5 am by the sudden arrival of police cars. Many residents came out to see what had happened. Some took out their phones and started filming, preparing to post online.

"Deliveryman takes advantage of woman late at night while delivering food. Innocent woman victimized. Is this the decay of morality or the distortion of human nature?"

Soon heated discussions broke out on major online platforms.

In a private room at Jinan City People's Hospital.

Su He was lying in bed. The doctor had just left when two police officers came in.

"Uncle police..." Su He wanted to get up, but his lower back hurt badly.

An older policeman said, "No need to get up, just talk lying down. The doctor said you suffered a heavy blow to your head and have a minor concussion. Let's get right to it. We already know your basic information. Now we hope you can cooperate and answer some questions."

Su He was still quite in awe of the police profession, especially now after experiencing a murder case. He was the only eyewitness.

"Hello, I'm Detective Yang Lin from the city Public Security Bureau Criminal Investigation Division. We're here today to learn about the situation from you." The younger policeman took out his police ID and showed it to Su He, while introducing, "This is our deputy director of the division, Wen Jie."

The older policeman also showed his police ID. Su He didn't look closely, as no one could pretend to be a police officer to trick him.

"On the way to the hospital, our officers recorded your statement. You said the suspect is a local person, correct?" Officer Yang took out a voice recorder and placed it on the sheets, while flipping through the transcript.

"Yes." Su He answered calmly.

"You said you didn't get a clear look at the suspect's face. How did you determine he is a local?"

"His accent. He had a strong Jinan accent. For a delivery person who deals with all kinds of people daily, I'm certain that man is from Jinan City."

"At 11:03 last night, you received an order while you were at 26 Xingxing Street. The pickup location was 3 km away. From the pickup spot to Jia Ming community is 5 km. The system estimated it would take only 19 minutes, but you didn't arrive at Jia Ming until 11:32. Why?"

"After I accepted the order, I was going to take the small alley on Mingyang Street to cut through, but who knew there was a late night traffic accident blocking the exit. I had to double back and take another route. Also when I went to pick up the food, the restaurant had already closed. Finding the takeout delayed me another two minutes."

"How did you determine at the time that there was a corpse inside the suitcase?"

"That's how it always goes on TV shows."

Su He didn't omit a single detail, including about him eavesdropping at room 603's door.

The two officers asked several more questions, all of which Su He truthfully answered.

"Alright, Mr. Su, thank you for your cooperation. If there is any information you've left out, please contact us promptly. Some colleagues of ours are outside, tell them if you need anything." Officer Wen, who was called Wen Jie, stood up, preparing to leave.

Su He hesitated, then tried asking, "Can I use my phone for a bit? I need to ask for time off work, or else I'll lose this month's bonus."

"We've contacted your station and helped ask for time off for you, don't worry. As long as you actively cooperate, you can go back to work after you're discharged from the hospital."

Detective Yang took away the voice recorder and followed Officer Wen out.

In the hallway, Yang Lin couldn't help but look back and ask, "Sir, this Su He is too calm, doesn't seem like someone who's experienced a murder case."

Wen Jie stopped and stared at Yang Lin, reprimanding: "You little rascal, when you're out don't say I'm your master. With you being like this, a top graduating cadet, it'd be shameful if word got out!"

Yang Lin lowered his head.

"Alright, head back to the station first and organize all the materials. The bureau chief said there'll be a meeting in an hour."

...

In the ward, Su He kept calling out to the system in his mind, but there was no response. He walked to the door but found a uniformed policeman standing guard outside.

Crap, am I being treated as a suspect?

Su He had watched his share of TV shows. The cop at his door wasn't here to protect him - it was surveillance!

What to do? He had two days left before his 500 yuan installment on Huabei would be overdue. He had to think of a way to get out and sell the old batteries on his e-bike.

Suddenly, three options appeared before his eyes again.

[Option 1: Negotiate with the police to borrow 500 yuan to pay back Huabei. Reward: New delivery uniform]

[Option 2: Take advantage when the cop isn't looking and sneak out of the hospital. Reward: New cell phone]

[Option 3: Tell the police you have major clues but must participate in solving the case. Reward: Delivery order acceptance rate increases 10%]

Su He eliminated the second option without thinking. If nothing unexpected happened, sneaking out of the hospital would land him in an interrogation room next time.

The third option was very tempting, but Su He wasn't excited because he didn't have any other major clues except the system, which he had chosen to keep secret. He had already truthfully recounted everything he should, even not leaving out the part about Ma Mingzhe rewarding Chirp Big Baby.

There was no other way. Su He awkwardly asked the policeman, "Officer, I wanted to ask, um...could I...uh..."

Su He really couldn't bring himself to ask to borrow 500 yuan to pay back Huabei. It was too embarrassing. He dug out a three bedroom one living room plan with his big toe.

The officer asked in puzzlement, "Can or can't what?"

"Give me a cigarette to smoke!" Su He said, letting out a long breath.

"Sorry, I don't smoke."

"What a coincidence, I don't smoke either."

Su He walked back into the ward.